According to two of Human Rights Watch’s top Latin America experts, the way forward in the largely stalemated US-Cuba relationship is for the Obama administration to drop pursuit of the regime change clauses of Helms-Burton in favor of a one-issue focus on human rights, then team with international partners to push for one simple goal […]
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton heads to Peru today for the meetings of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States, which will be held in Lima. Her trip will also include stops in Ecuador, Colombia and Barbados, and she’ll already be back in the States on June 10 (Thursday). The trip has nothing to […]
The movie Avatar is a blockbuster, and now the third-highest grossing movie of all time. It is also a story about migration. In short, it depicts humans in the year 2154, seeking to extract a valuable mineral from a far-off planet called Pandora, and willing to do so at any cost, including the extermination of […]
Yesterday Hugo Chávez, President of Venezuela, gave a more tempered speech to the United Nations General Assembly. He said the smell of sulfur (his reference to George W. Bush in 2006) had dissipated, and that instead he sensed new hope with President Barack Obama in office. Further description of the speech by the Associated Press […]
El Universal reported that a decline in revenue from oil sales caused imports into Venezuela to drop by 49% during the first six months of 2009. Despite a recent increase the value of petroleum, Venezuela has experienced a sharp reduction in available funds since the price of a barrel of oil is just over $65, […]
Yesterday, President Hugo Chávez continued his travels overseas, spending the day in Russia. During his time there he announced that Venezuela will recognize Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states. A brief war with between Russia and Georgia in August 2008 led to the separation of these two regions. More information is available in today’s […]
As the United States, Britain, Germany and France threaten Iran with sanctions over its nuclear program, Iran can at least count support from its loyal friend, Venezuela. Al Jazeera quoted Chavez as stating, “We are certain that Iran, as it has shown, will not back down in its effort to obtain what is a sovereign […]
Here is an update on some of the stories I have previously blogged on: 1) Iran’s Role in the Latin America (July 30) The Iranian lawmakers have questioned the $280 million loan given to Bolivia. Their disapproval arises due to the Article 80 of the Iranian Constitution, which states that the Parliament must first approve […]
The recent loan of $280 million given to Bolivia by the Iranian government serves as another example of Iran’s growing influence in Latin America. This loan is given to Bolivia in addition to 1.1 billion Euros that Iran pledged in August 2007 to invest in Bolivian agriculture, industry, energy and humanitarian affairs. Many leftists regimes […]